This gallery contains 27 photos.
The Tamil Quarter (or erstwhile “Black Town”) of Pondicherry sits to the West of the French Quarter. It was separated from the latter by a Grand Canal that bisected downtown Pondicherry, and still runs through the city today. In size, … Continue reading
This gallery contains 36 photos.
We begin our tour of Pondicherry in the Ville Blanche, or White Town. This is the town the French built, and it as Gallic and Mediterranean as it can be, thousands of miles away from Marseille. Most of the buildings … Continue reading
This gallery contains 29 photos.
Pondicherry was established in 1674, when La Compagnie française des Indes orientales, otherwise known as the French East India Company acquired a plot of land on the Coromandel Coast from the Sultan of Bijapur. As trading settlements went, Pondicherry was a … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
So I did a podcast interview with Thomas L. Fraser about Asian Civilisations Museum Singapore, the challenges of being a Museum Director and what to look out for if you’re thinking of giving to a Museum. This arose from an … Continue reading
This gallery contains 15 photos.
The Connemara Hotel was the grande dame of the Madras hospitality scene. Its earliest incarnation was a private residence bought in 1815 by one of the foremost merchants of the city at the time, Mr John Binny. The road on which … Continue reading
This gallery contains 22 photos.
In 52 A.D., so it is said, St Thomas – one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ – landed at the Malabar Coast (the South-west Coast) of India, and travelled across the sub-continent to the ancient (and magnificent) port … Continue reading
This gallery contains 41 photos.
This second part of our leisurely wander through Old Madras (today’s Chennai), takes us down three major thoroughfares in the city – Poonamallee High Road, Mount Road (and the suburb of Egmore), and South Beach Road along the Marina. These … Continue reading
This gallery contains 37 photos.
Our first walking tour of Old Madras takes in the two oldest sections of the city, both of which date from the initial founding of the city, some 370 years ago. They constitute Madras’ Old Town and make for a charming, though … Continue reading
This gallery contains 23 photos.
Madras (today’s Chennai), is India’s fourth city, after New Delhi, Bombay and Calcutta. It has a fascinating history and a rich wealth of architectural heritage, but is often looked over for its more glamorous sister-cities. What is perhaps surprising for … Continue reading
This gallery contains 20 photos.
When I first got the job, someone – a good friend of mine who just so happens to be the other Director of a National Museum (there aren’t that many – you know who you are) warned me that I … Continue reading
Dream Of A City 